3.4 Carrying Capacity

Describe carrying capacity.

• When a population exceeds its carrying capacity (carrying capacity can be denoted as K), overshoot occurs. There are environmental impacts of population overshoot, including resource depletion.
• Enduring understanding ERT-3: Populations change over time in reaction to a variety of factors.

Describe the impact of carrying capacity on ecosystems.

• A major ecological effect of population overshoot is dieback of the population (often severe to catastrophic) because the lack of available resources leads to famine, disease, and/or conflict.
• Enduring understanding ERT-3: Populations change over time in reaction to a variety of factors.